1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an exhaust component, which is included in a gas-exhaust line for gases resulting from the combustion of a fuel within a heat engine. This invention also relates to an exhaust line including such an exhaust component as well as to an installation for the exhaust of gases including such an exhaust component.
This invention relates to the field of the car industry and, in particular, to that of the manufacture of equipment to ensure the exhaust of gases resulting from the combustion of a fuel within a thermal combustion engine, which a motor vehicle includes.
2. Description of Related Art Including Information Disclosed Under 37 CFR 1.97 and 37 CFR 1.98.
The equipment of the prior art adopts the shape of an exhaust line connected to said engine, at the level of the outlet of the latter, and includes, in the direction of the gas flow, first of all, an upstream pipe for conveying the gases coming from the engine and connected to the latter. Then, there is a first means for connecting to the upstream pipe for conveying the gases, then, a first tube and a second exhaust tube. These two tubes are parallel and connected to said first connection means. This exhaust line then includes a second connection means connected to said parallel exhaust tubes and, finally, a downstream gas-discharge pipe connected to this second connection means.
In this respect, it should be noted that the first connection means is, usually, formed of a three-way valve installed directly at the outlet of the upstream gas-conveying tube and including, internally, movable means designed to direct the gas flow, as the case may be, towards the first or the second of the parallel exhaust tubes. Because of the installation of the three-way valve near the engine, the exhaust gases, coming from this engine and having a particularly high temperature, subject this three-way valve to such temperature stresses that they cause degradations to the movable means, which results into a dysfunction of the exhaust line.
It should also be noted that the first exhaust tube includes, usually, a decontamination element as well as a silencer installed in series with the decontamination element. A second exhaust tube is formed by a bypass tube. The presence of a decontamination element and a silencer in series at the level of the first tube generates, in this first tube and in the three-way valve, an important counter-pressure which, on the one hand, is prejudicial to the proper operation of this valve and, on the other hand, requires the use of powerful and large-size and highly energy-consuming means for activating this valve, so as to be able to withstand this important counter-pressure and to counteract the latter.